Marketplace system in which users generate user-to-user preorder listings via a definitive product catalog

ABSTRACT

An electronic marketplace system provides various features for assisting users in listing products for sale, locating the listings for a product, and performing related actions. A user wishing to sell a product can browse to an existing description of the product in an electronic catalog and then select an option to create a corresponding listing. The pending listings for a product are preferably displayed or summarized on the product&#39;s detail page in the catalog. When no such listings exist, an option to preorder the product from an unspecified seller may be provided, and information regarding the resulting preorders may be displayed on the associated product detail pages to entice potential sellers. In one embodiment, the electronic catalog also serves as a retail sales catalog of a merchant.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a division of U.S. application Ser. No.10/142,657, filed May 9, 2002, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C.§119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/336,409, filed Oct. 31,2001, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/351,207, filed Jan. 22,2002. The disclosures of the aforesaid applications are herebyincorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to electronic marketplaces through whichusers buy and sell items over a computer network. More specifically, theinvention relates to user interfaces and methods through which users mayplace items for sale, locate items offered by others, and performrelated actions within an electronic marketplace.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As the popularity and accessibility of computer networks continue toincrease, it has become common for retail merchants to set up online“stores” for marketing and selling products. Typically, an online storeincludes a web-based or other electronic catalog of products that areavailable for purchase. Users browse the catalog using well knownnavigational tools to locate and purchase products of interest.

Electronic systems that support user-to-user sales of products have alsobecome popular. These user-to-user sales systems typically include anelectronic server system, such as a web site or an online servicesnetwork, that provides services for users to list products for sale to,and purchase products from, other users. Sellers in such systemstypically include both small merchants and non-merchant individuals.Existing user-to-user sales systems typically support fixed-price sales,auctions, or both. Product listings can typically be located using asearch engine. In some cases, the user-to-user sales system is operatedin association with an online retail store such that a customer cansearch a retail catalog, as well as a database of product listings fromusers, via a single search query.

User-to-user sales systems have the potential to attract large numbersof users, thereby potentially generating large and varied productlistings of both new and used products. However, such systems commonlysuffer from a number of deficiencies. For example, existing systemstypically rely on sellers to supply descriptions of the products theyare selling. The task of creating marketplace listings can therefore becumbersome—particularly for small sellers. For example, to create aneffective listing, the seller typically must obtain and upload adetailed product description and image.

In addition, different sellers in an online marketplace will often usevery different terminology to describe identical products. As a result,buyers seeking certain products often fail to find relevant listings,and sometimes become overwhelmed in less-relevant listings. Further,small sellers sometimes fail to fully and accurately describe theirproducts, resulting in lost sales and/or erroneous purchases. Further,unlike the retail listings in some online stores, marketplace listingstypically do not include customer ratings, customer and professionalreviews, sales rank data, and other types of product-related dataprovided by sources other than the sellers.

Some user-to-user sales systems seek to address the above problems byallowing a seller to specify a UPC (Universal Product Code) or otherproduct identifier of a product being listed. This allows the system toassociate all of the seller listings for a particular product.Typically, however, the seller must know or look up the correct productidentifier in order to create such a listing.

Embodiments of the present invention seek to overcome some or all of theabove and other problems.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

Various inventive features are disclosed for facilitating user-to-userand other sales in an electronic marketplace, including features forassisting users in efficiently creating and locating marketplacelistings. These features may be embodied individually or in anappropriate combination within a particular system.

In a preferred embodiment, the marketplace system includes a database ofinformation about products that may be listed by users within an onlinemarketplace. This information typically includes product IDs, anddescriptions and product images provided by manufacturers ordistributors of the products. The product information in this databaseis viewable by end users through a browsable electronic catalog in whicheach product is preferably fully identified within a correspondingproduct detail page. Each product detail page typically includes aproduct image and description, and may include customer ratings,customer and professional reviews, sales rank data, lists of relatedproducts, and/or other types of supplemental data that may assistconsumers in making informed purchase decisions. This supplemental datamay be maintained or generated by the operator of the marketplace systemas a service to its customers. Users of the system can preferably locatespecific product detail pages within the catalog by executing searchqueries, navigating a browse tree, or using any other navigation methodsupported by the particular system.

To add a listing for selling a particular product within themarketplace, a seller may browse to the detail page for that product andthen select a link for adding a listing. Because the seller fullyidentifies the product to be listed by browsing to the correspondingdetail page, the listing may be accurately associated with a particularproduct ID (UPC, ISBN, etc.) without the need for the seller to supplythe product ID.

In addition, because detailed information already exists within thedatabase for that product, there is no need for the seller to supply acomplete description of the item. For example, in one embodiment, theseller can simply specify the condition and selling price of theparticular unit of the product. Because the seller need not supply adetailed product description, listings may be added more rapidly andefficiently. The newly added product listing (referred to generally as a“marketplace listing” or “marketplace product listing”) may, forexample, be in the form of a fixed-price listing or an auction listing.

To assist potential buyers in efficiently locating the marketplacelistings for a particular product, each product detail page preferablydisplays or summarizes the existing marketplace listings for thecorresponding product. These listings may be associated with a varietyof different sellers (including individuals and small merchants), andmay be for both new and used units of the product. Thus, by accessingthe detail page for a particular product, a buyer can efficiently andaccurately locate all of the current marketplace listings (if any) forthat product, as well as view detailed product information from theproduct database (typically including product images, third partyproduct reviews, etc). The user can also preferably compare the prices,product conditions, and other parameters of the various listings, andcan initiate purchasing of the product from a particular seller.

Because each marketplace listing is displayed in conjunction with thecorresponding product's description within the database/catalog, thereis a significantly reduced need for buyers to rely on the accuracy andcompleteness of product information supplied by the seller. Thus, therisk of buyers misidentifying the listed products (e.g., buying productA with the belief that it is product B), or of being unable to determinethe identity or characteristics of a listed product, is significantlyreduced.

In one embodiment, some or all of the detail pages may also provide anoption to purchase the product from a preferred retailer or “providerseller,” which may be the operator of the marketplace system or abusiness partner of the operator. The system may thus serve as both anonline store and an online marketplace, with the marketplace sellersbeing permitted to list their items for sale on the product detail pagesor other catalog “real estate” of the store. This feature provides across-selling benefit by effectively driving retail customers tonon-retail listings and vice versa. Further, because catalogs used byonline stores tend to have detailed and accurate product descriptions ofconsistent format, the task of evaluating marketplace listings is madeeasier for buyers.

A detail page may also be configured to display any existing marketplacelistings for products that are similar or related to the productfeatured in the product detail page. For instance, a detail page for aparticular laptop computer may, in addition to displaying any existingmarketplace listings for the laptop computer itself, display anylistings that exist for (a) accessories for the laptop computer, and/or(b) similar laptop computers. A table of similar or related products maybe used to implement this feature.

When a particular product is currently unavailable within the onlinemarketplace, the product's detail page may provide an option for buyersto pre-order the corresponding product from an unspecified marketplaceseller. These preorder requests may be displayed within thecorresponding product detail pages to entice possessors of such productsto list the same within the marketplace. In one embodiment, the creatorof a preorder listing is prompted to specify a minimum product conditiondesired and a maximum price to be paid. These parameters are preferablyused by the system to automatically match preorder listings withsuitable marketplace listings.

To accommodate volume sellers, the marketplace system may also provide abulk uploading service that permits sellers to add multiple listings ata time without first browsing to the associated product detail pages.When a bulk-uploaded listing record does not specify a standard-formatproduct ID, the bulk uploading service preferably executes a searchroutine to attempt to match the listing record to a correspondingproduct record of a product represented in the electronic catalog. Whensuch a match is found, the listing record may be associated with thecorresponding product ID, and the resulting record displayed on theproduct's detail page. When no match is found, the system may, in oneembodiment, create a non-catalog-based product listing that is displayedseparately from the products catalog.

The various pages of the electronic catalog may be in the form of webpages, display screens of an online services network or interactivetelevision system, or any other type of suitable electronic display.Although the marketplace system preferably employs product detail pages,the above and other features may be implemented without the use ofproduct detail pages. For instance, the electronic catalog may listmultiple products per page without an option to drill down to productdetail pages. In such cases, the option to add a listing for a product,the existing listings for that product, and/or the option to preorderthe product, may simply be displayed in conjunction with thecorresponding product description on the multi-product page.

Another feature of the invention, which may be implemented alone or incombination with the features set forth above, involves providing anoption for users to add marketplace listings from their respectivepurchase histories. In a preferred embodiment, the marketplace systemmaintains a purchase history for each buyer within the system. Thepurchase histories may reflect purchases made from a variety ofdifferent sellers (including both merchants and non-merchants), and mayinclude gift purchases made by others for the subject user. To add amarketplace listing in one embodiment, a user may browse his or herpurchase history and select one or more items therefrom to sell withinthe marketplace. Because each product is accurately identified by virtueof its selection from the purchase history, the listing may beaccurately associated with a particular product ID or product recordwithin a product database (as with listings created from product detailpages). In addition, because a preexisting description of the productpreferably exists within the database/catalog, there is no need for theseller to supply a detailed product description. The seller may be ableto list a product to sale by merely specifying a selling price and theproduct's condition.

To further facilitate the ability for users to add marketplace listingsfrom their respective purchase histories, the marketplace system mayproactively remind users of their prior purchases and of the option tore-sell the purchased items. For instance, at a particular point in timeafter a user purchases an item from the marketplace (or from a retailcatalog), the system may send an email message or a custom page to theuser describing the item and providing a link for selling the item. Insome embodiments, selection of the link may cause the item to be listedimmediately (without further action by the user).

In some cases, transmission of these reminder or “listing request”messages may be triggered by specific user actions, such as the purchaseby the user of a superceding product, or submission by the user of areview or rating for the product. In addition, listing requests may begenerated in response to the existence of preorder requests; forexample, when the number of preorder requests for an item exceeds aparticular threshold, the system may identify and send email-basedlisting requests to users who recently purchased that item.

Another feature of the invention is a service for suggesting prices tocreators of marketplace and/or preorder listings. In one embodiment,when a user initiates creation of a marketplace listing for a particularproduct (e.g., from a product detail or a purchase history, as describedabove), the system may suggest a selling price to the user. This pricemay be based on one or more of the following, as well as other,criteria: (1) the current retail price for the product in an associatedonline store, (2) the manufacturer's suggested retail price, (3) thecondition and/or age of the product (as specified by the user, or aspredicted or determined from the user's purchase history in the case ofa re-sell item), (4) prices paid by other marketplace users for the sameor similar products of like condition, (5) prices at which the productis currently available from other marketplace sellers; (6) pricesspecified in any pending preorder requests for the item, (7) the currentdemand for the product as evidenced by preorder requests. The same orsimilar criteria may also be used to suggest a maximum purchase price tothe creator of a preorder listing.

As will be recognized, some of the foregoing features may be implementedin a particular system without others without departing from the scopeof the invention. By way of example and not limitation, one or more ofthe foregoing methods for creating product listings may be implementedwithout others, and/or without the ability to preorder products frommarketplace sellers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A system that implements the foregoing and other features will now bedescribed with reference to the drawings. The drawings and theassociated descriptions are provided to illustrate specific embodimentsand features of the invention and not to limit the scope of theinvention. Throughout the drawings, reference numbers are re-used toindicate correspondence between referenced elements. In addition, thefirst digit of each reference number indicates the figure in which theelement first appears.

FIG. 1A illustrates an exemplary product detail page showing marketplaceproduct listings, and an option to create a marketplace listing,according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1B illustrates another view or version of the product detail pageof FIG. 1A, with additional information about marketplace listings forused products.

FIG. 2 illustrates a product detail page of a product that is notcurrently available from a marketplace seller.

FIG. 3A illustrates an example web page for creating a preorder listingfor the product featured in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3B illustrates an example product detail page showing pendingpreorder listings for the displayed product.

FIGS. 3C-3E illustrate an example sequence of pages for creating amarketplace product listing once a product has been selected.

FIG. 4A illustrates an example purchase history page that providesfunctionality for selecting products to list for sale (or “resale”)within the marketplace.

FIG. 4B illustrates an example resale page corresponding to the productselections shown in FIG. 4A.

FIG. 4C illustrates an example listing request that solicits amarketplace listing from a user based on the user's purchase history.

FIG. 5A illustrates a block diagram of an example web-basedimplementation of the marketplace system.

FIG. 5B illustrates a process for generating a product detail page.

FIG. 6 illustrates one method by which a seller may create a marketplacelisting.

FIG. 7A illustrates a bulk uploading process that may be used by volumesellers to list products for sale.

FIG. 7B illustrates representative logic for matching an uploadedproduct with a product description contained in a catalog.

FIG. 8 illustrates a process by which a user may preorder a product.

FIG. 9 illustrates a process by which a marketplace listing may becreated for a product listed in a user's purchase history.

FIG. 10 illustrates a buying process for making a purchase.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

An online marketplace system which embodies the above and otherinventive features will now be described in detail. As will be apparent,many of the disclosed features may be used without others, and may beimplemented differently than described herein and/or in combination withfeatures not disclosed herein. Although described primarily in thecontext of a web site system, the various inventive features are alsoapplicable to other types of multi-user interactive systems in whichusers may browse and make purchases from an electronic catalog,including but not limited to online services networks, interactivetelevision systems, in-store kiosk systems, and systems that supportbrowsing by voice. The following description is thus intended toillustrate, and not limit, the invention.

Throughout the description, the term “marketplace” is used to refergenerally to an electronic forum through which users may buy and sellproducts using a preexisting electronic catalog of products. The term“marketplace listing,” or “marketplace product listing” refers generallyto an electronic listing for selling a product (and typically a specificproduct unit) within a marketplace. In a preferred embodiment,marketplace listings are associated with particular product records in aproducts database, and are displayed in the product catalog inassociation with corresponding product descriptions.

The term “marketplace system,” or merely “system,” is used to refergenerally to the underlying computer hardware, software and datacomponents that provide the marketplace. In one embodiment, themarketplace system also provides services for users to (1) use theproduct catalog to make retail purchases from a preferred seller, and(2) buy and sell items in an area in which sellers' product listings arenot associated with specific product records or displayed within theelectronic catalog (referred to as “non-catalog-based” listings or“non-marketplace” listings).

The term “product” may, depending on its context, refer to either (a) aparticular unit or copy of a product, or (b) any unit or copy of thatproduct. The term “unit” is used in some instances to emphasize that aparticular unit or copy of a product is involved.

The term “user” refers generally to an individual, or a set ofindividuals, associated with a particular user account. In somecontexts, the term may also refer to an individual who has not yet setup an account.

I. OVERVIEW

According to one embodiment of the invention, the marketplace systemincludes various computer-implemented services through which sellers canlist products for sale in a preexisting electronic catalog, and buyerscan browse the catalog to purchase and preorder items from marketplacesellers. As described below, the catalog also provides an option topurchase retail versions of some or all of the products from a preferredretailer. The electronic catalog is preferably controlled oradministered by a single business entity, referred to herein as the“marketplace operator” or “marketplace provider.”

The products represented in the catalog are typically physical productsthat are shipped to the buyer, such as books, CDs, DVDs, electronicdevices, and toys. In some embodiments, the products may also includedigital products downloaded or transmitted to a buyer's computingdevice, such as music files, viewable content, or software programs.Other examples of the types of products that may be included in thecatalog include tickets for travel or events, cars, and movie titles. Insome embodiments, the purchases need not involve an actual transfer ofownership, but may involve leases, licenses, rentals, subscriptions, andother types of business transactions.

The electronic catalog is preferably accessible over the Internet orother network using an ordinary web browser. Some or all of the productsrepresented in the electronic catalog are products that may be listedfor sale within the marketplace by users of the system. Preferably, theelectronic catalog includes representations of many millions ofproducts, including products falling in many different productcategories, to facilitate the ability for users to list the productsthey wish to sell. The catalog content preferably includes “static”product descriptions and images provided by their manufacturers,distributors, and/or another appropriate source. This content ispreferably stored in a database used to dynamically generate the catalogpages, but may alternatively be contained within the HTML or othercoding of such pages.

The electronic catalog can be navigated through a number of conventionalmechanisms. For example, users may browse a hierarchy of productcategories and associated products, often referred to as a browse tree.Moreover, users may enter search terms into a search engine and obtainsearch results. In any event, users may navigate the electronic catalogto locate information on one or more products of interest.

As is common in some online store systems, detailed information about aproduct can be obtained by navigating to the product's detail pagewithin the catalog. Each detail page may include, for example, a productname, a unique product ID, a specification or other description of theproduct (including manufacturer, brand, author, artist, etc., asapplicable), a picture or multimedia presentation of the product,reviews of the product (e.g., from customers and/or professionalreviewers), average customer ratings, a listing of similar or relatedproducts, pricing and availability information, shipping information,and/or sales rank data maintained by the system. Two or more differentversions or views of the same product detail page may be presentedwithin the electronic catalog (see, e.g., FIGS. 1A and 1B), and theseviews may be customized or personalized for the viewer of the page. Someor all of the product information displayed in a detail page ispreferably “static” information (e.g., provided by the product'smanufacturer or distributor) that does not change over time (exceptunder the control of the marketplace operator) as marketplace listingsare added and removed. As described below, each detail page alsopreferably lists or summarizes the existing marketplace listings for theproduct on that page (and optionally for related or similar products),and provides an option for a user to add a marketplace listing for thatproduct.

Each particular product detail page typically provides an option topurchase the displayed product from one or more sellers. For example, adetail page may provide an option to purchase the product from apreferred retailer or “provider seller,” which may be either aprovider/operator of the marketplace system or a business partnerthereof. Typically, each provider seller is a well known retailmerchant. (The name “Store.com” is used in the screen displays torepresent a hypothetical provider seller.) Two or more differentprovider sellers may sell products via the system, with each assigned toa different respective product category or set of categories (e.g.,books versus toys versus electronics). Alternatively, the differentprovider sellers may be periodically rotated on a particular productcategory or set of categories based on criteria negotiated with themarketplace operator. In some embodiments, the catalog does not providean option to purchase products from a provider seller (e.g., the systemmay only support user-to-user sales).

A detail page may also include one or more marketplace listings createdby end users of the system (generally “marketplace sellers”). Themarketplace sellers typically include individual users and smallmerchants, and in some implementations, may also include large merchants(including retailers) that are not provider sellers. The marketplacelistings may be for used or pre-owned products, retail or other newproducts, and/or other types of products such as collectibles. In someimplementations, and/or for certain products or product categories, thesystem may only support marketplace listings of used product units.

Typically, each marketplace listing is for a particular unit of aproduct, and is removed from the detail page once that unit ispurchased. Persistent listings used to sell an inventory of productunits may also be supported; for example, the system may support theability for a marketplace seller to request that the listing remain inplace until a specified number of units have been sold.

As is conventional, users of the marketplace system can register onlineas marketplace sellers and thereafter create marketplace listings. Aspart of seller registration and/or as marketplace listings are created,the system may allow the user/seller to specify shipping and otherpolicies to be published to buyers, and specify a bank account intowhich proceeds from sales are to be deposited by the system or itsoperator. An example process by which users may efficiently create linksto their bank accounts is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/517,563, filed Mar. 2, 2000, the disclosure of which is herebyincorporated by reference.

The system may also support the ability for users to add product“preorder” listings, such as when a desired product is currentlyunavailable within the marketplace. For example, a buyer may add apreorder listing to a product detail page specifying that the buyerwishes to purchase a next available used product unit available from amarketplace seller for a designated price (see FIGS. 2 and 3A, discussedbelow). Preorder listings advantageously entice possessors of a productto sell that product. The preorder listings may also be used by aprovider seller to gauge the level of current demand for a givenproduct, as may be desirable for purposes of inventory management. Aswith marketplace listings, users can preferably initiate creation ofpreorder listings from corresponding product detail pages. As discussedbelow, the system may automatically match preorder listings over timewith suitable marketplace listings.

Once registered with the marketplace system, a marketplace seller mayadd a marketplace listing for a particular product from the catalogdescription, and preferably from the product detail page, for thatproduct. For example, when a seller wishes to sell a book he or she isfinished with, according to one embodiment, the seller may access theproduct detail page associated with the book, and as discussed in detailbelow, add a marketplace listing to the product detail page. Thus, oncea user becomes familiar with the navigation tools and methods that existfor browsing the catalog (e.g., as the result of making purchases), theuser can use the same tools and methods to locate/specify a product tobe sold. An important benefit of this method for adding marketplacelistings is that the seller need not supply a description of the product(although the marketplace seller may nevertheless be permitted to supplydescriptive content). For instance, in one embodiment, a seller maycreate a marketplace listing from a product detail page by merelyspecifying a selling price and the product's condition, without more.Another benefit is that sellers need not supply UPCs, ISBNs, or otherstandard product identifiers for the products they wish to list withinthe marketplace.

As described below, users may also be permitted to add marketplacelistings from their respective purchase histories, without browsing tothe associated product descriptions in the catalog. For instance, a userwho previously bought an electronics device (from a marketplace selleror a provider seller) using the system may select that item from alisting of his or her purchase history, and then simply specify a priceand product condition for re-selling the item within the marketplace(see FIGS. 4A and 4B). To enable this feature, the marketplace systemmaintains user purchase histories that reflect the purchases made byeach user of the system. A user's purchase history may also includepurchases by others of gifts for that user, including but not limited topurchases made from a wish list for the user.

An important benefit of the above-described methods for addingmarketplace and preorder listings is that each such listing may bestored by the marketplace system in association with a correspondingproduct ID or product record within a product database. As a result, themarketplace system can accurately identify and display all marketplace(and/or preorder) listings associated with a particular product. Thus,the likelihood that buyers will fail to locate relevant listings issignificantly reduced.

Significant benefits may also be achieved by displaying the currentmarketplace and/or preorder listings in association with catalog content(product descriptions) obtained from sources other than the marketplacesellers themselves. (As used herein, the term “catalog content” refersgenerally to product descriptions and data obtained from sources otherthan the marketplace sellers of the associated products—such asmanufacturers, publishers, distributors, professional reviewers, theprovider/operator of the system, etc.) For example, for marketplacelistings, because buyers can identify the listed products from suchcatalog content, without the need to rely on the accuracy ofdescriptions supplied by the marketplace sellers, there is a reducedlikelihood that buyers will misidentify, or be unable to identify, thelisted products. Further, in embodiments in which the catalog contentincludes professional reviews, customer reviews, average customerratings, and/or other types of supplemental information not commonlyfound in auction and other user-to-user sales listings, potential buyerscan efficiently make informed purchase decisions of products listed inthe marketplace.

The foregoing association of product listings to individual productdetail pages is preferably accomplished through the use of product IDs.The product IDs can include Uniform Product Codes (UPCs), ISBNs, andother types of standard product codes. For purposes of uniformity, evenif a product already has a standardized ID (ISBN, UPC, etc.) associatedwith it, each product in the catalog is preferably assigned a storestandard ID referred to herein as an “ASIN.” For other products thatlack a standardized ID, the operator of the marketplace system maygenerate and assign ASINs.

According to one embodiment, the online marketplace system uses ASINs asan index to relate or otherwise associate information in variousdatabases with each other to, for example, build product detail pages.In a preferred embodiment, the online marketplace system can use an ASINto retrieve a product's catalog content, and any associatedmarketplace/preorder/provider listings, and build product detail pagessuch as those described below with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

According to another aspect of the invention, the online marketplacesystem may use the purchase histories of users, and/or other evidence ofproduct ownership, to proactively generate requests to such users tolist their items within the marketplace. Such “listing requests” may besent by email, a custom web page, or otherwise, and may support theabove-mentioned “low friction” method for adding a marketplace listing(e.g., specify condition and selling price, without more). According toone embodiment, the timing of such a request may depend on the type ofproduct purchased. For example, for a short novel, the request may besent a few weeks after the purchase, while a longer time interval may beused for longer book titles.

The proactive requests may also be sent as the result of changes indemand for a particular product as developed, for example, through theforegoing preordering process. For example, when one or more preorderrequests exist for a particular product, an executable task of themarketplace system may search the purchase histories of users toidentify one or more recent purchasers of that product, and then send alisting request to each such purchaser. The listing request may includea suitable message such as the following: “As a recent purchaser of<item name>, we thought you might like to know that <# of preorders>buyers are currently waiting to purchase this item used; if you wouldlike to sell this item within the store.com marketplace, click here.”

Additionally, a particular action by a user may cause a listing requestto be sent to that user; for example, a request to list a particularbook title may be presented to a user when or shortly after that user(1) submits a review or rating for the book, or (2) purchases the book'ssequel. Where the action by the user evidences ownership (e.g.,submission of a product review), the listing request may be presentedregardless of whether that product is included in the user's purchasehistory.

When a user attempts to add a marketplace or preorder listing by one ofthe foregoing methods, the user's identity may be determined usingcookies, a login procedure, a session ID (e.g., if the user has alreadylogged in), or any other suitable method. If the user has not yetregistered as a seller, the user may be prompted to do so.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the onlinemarketplace system may provide a service for suggesting a suitableselling or asking price to the creator of a marketplace or preorderlisting, respectively. For example, the system may use one or more ofthe following criteria to suggest a selling price to a user who iscreating a marketplace listing: the current retail price for theproduct, the manufacture's suggested retail price, the condition and/orage of the product (as specified by the user, or predicted from theuser's purchase history in the case of a re-sell item), prices paid byother marketplace users for the same or similar products of likecondition. In one embodiment, the user is free to use or ignore thesuggested price. In embodiments in which auctions are supported, aseller may use the suggested price to (1) select a minimum price atwhich bids are to be accepted, and/or (2) select a “buy it now” price atwhich a buyer can immediately purchase the item. As described below,marketplace system's user interface may support the ability for a userto create a marketplace listing (including specifying the selling priceand condition), from a product detail page or a purchase historylisting, with a single mouse click or other single selection action.

When a marketplace listing is created from a user's purchase history,the system may also use data associated with the user's prior purchaseof the item to assist the user in creating the listing. By way ofspecific example, a user may purchase a used marketplace item listed asbeing in “good” condition for $25, and two weeks later, may select thatitem from his purchase history to create a marketplace listing. In sucha scenario, the system may use “price=$25” and “condition=good” asdefault parameters for reselling the item. The user may accept thesedefault parameters (e.g., by selecting a single-action link for creatingthe listing) or specify new parameters.

The marketplace system may also provide a bulk uploading service forallowing volume marketplace sellers, such as large merchants, to includetheir inventories in the listings of the online marketplace withouthaving to browse to the associated product descriptions in the catalog.According to one embodiment, the bulk uploading service is implementedby a loader component that allows a volume seller to upload multiplelistings to the marketplace system at one time from the volume seller'sdatabase. Typically, these listings include detailed productdescriptions and images, and are uploaded using a standard or uniformformat published to volume sellers.

The loader preferably analyzes each such listing, and attempts to matchthe listing to a product represented within a product database of themarketplace system, thereby associating the listing with an existingproduct detail page of the existing catalog. Each bulk-uploaded listingis added to the existing product detail page for the associated product.If the loader determines that a bulk-uploaded listing is for a productnot currently represented in the product database (and thus not includedin the catalog), the loader preferably uses the uploaded productdescription to generate a new database record and product detail pagefor the product. The marketplace operator can then review the newlygenerated product database record to determine the sufficiency of theinformation that is provided and whether the record should be added tothe electronic catalog. The number of products represented in theelectronic catalog may therefore grow under control of the marketplaceoperator over time as the result of bulk uploading activities of volumesellers.

In some embodiments, such as those directed primarily toperson-to-person sales, the capability to perform bulk uploads may beomitted.

As mentioned above, the system may also provide a service for allowingsellers to list products for sale without associating the listings withspecific products in the electronic catalog. These “non-catalog-based”or “non-marketplace” listings are not displayed on product detail pages,but may be located by potential buyers using a search engine or othernavigation tool. By supporting such non-catalog-based listings, thesystem accommodates sellers who wish to sell items that are notcurrently represented in the catalog at the same time that they sellitems represented in the catalog.

II. EXAMPLE WEB PAGES

Example pages and page flows illustrating specific web-basedimplementations of the above-described features will now be describedwith reference to FIGS. 1A-4B. Associated web site components andprocess flows are illustrated in FIGS. 5-10 and are described separatelybelow. Although the example pages depict fixed-price sales, it will berecognized that the illustrated features may also be used for auctionlistings.

A. Example Product Detail Pages

FIGS. 1A, 1B, 2, and 3B illustrate some of the types of information andoptions that may be presented within product detail pages in accordancewith one embodiment of the invention. Some types of catalog contentmentioned above (customer and professional reviews, etc.) are omittedfrom these figures to simplify the drawings. The example pages representan implementation in which products may be purchased from both providersellers and marketplace sellers, and in which the marketplace listingsare for fixed price sales. As mentioned above, the option to makepurchases from provider sellers may be omitted in some embodiments. Inaddition, in some implementations, some or all of the marketplacelistings may be in the form of auction listings.

As shown in FIG. 1A, each product detail page 100 includes productinformation 105 (one type of catalog content) and one or more boxes or“tags.” A provider tag 115 comprises various user activity buttons 120relating to purchasing the displayed product from a provider seller. Inthe FIG. 1 example, the provider tag 115 allows a user to immediatelypurchase the product (a music CD in this example) from the providerseller; or add the product to a personal shopping cart for subsequentpurchase. The page also includes a button 120 for adding the product toa personal wish list. Other buttons (not shown) may be included for, forexample, allowing users to submit customer ratings and reviews of theproduct.

The product detail page 100 in this example also includes a marketplacetag 125. The marketplace tag 125 comprises information related to theexisting marketplace listings for the product, if any. As shown in FIG.1A, the tag 125 specifies the types of the marketplace listings 130(“collectible” and “used” in this example), the quantity 135 of listingsof each of such type, and one or more of the associated prices 140 (thelowest price of all available used items in this example). Other typesof marketplace listings such as “Refurbished,” “New,” “Retail,” and“Auction” may be supported. In some implementations (and/or for certainproducts), the system may only permit marketplace listings for usedproducts.

Although the marketplace tag 125 displays a marketplace listing summaryin this example, additional details may be displayed in the tag 125 orelsewhere in the product detail page 100. The marketplace tag may alsolist or summarize any existing preorder listings for the product (seeFIG. 3B, discussed below). In addition, the marketplace tag 125 maydisplay a button for creating a preorder listing for the product (see“pre-order item” button in FIG. 2).

When a buyer wishes to purchase the product from the provider seller,the buyer may do so by selecting an appropriate button or link locatedin the provider tag 115. Alternatively, when the buyer compares theprice associated with the provider listing with the price indication 140for various types of marketplace listings, the buyer may be motivated toselect one of the marketplace listings. The buyer selects whichmarketplace listing to view by clicking on the corresponding hypertextlink in the marketplace listing (“collectible” or “used” in the presentexample). Clicking on the marketplace listing takes the buyer to amarketplace listing detail page as described in detail below.

The marketplace tag 125 also includes a “sell yours here” button 127 forallowing a user to create a marketplace listing for the product. Uponselection of this button in one embodiment, the user is prompted via oneor more separate pages to specify the product's condition and a sellingprice (see FIGS. 3C and 3D, discussed below). Fields, drop down menus,and/or other display elements may alternatively be included in theproduct detail page for allowing the user to specify the condition andprice, so that the user may create the listing without the need to firstaccess an additional page. The user's identity may be determined using abrowser cookie, although in some cases (e.g., where the selling priceexceeds a certain threshold), the user may also be prompted to supply auser ID or other authentication information. An example page flow foradding a marketplace listing to a product detail page is shown in FIGS.3C-3E (described below), and an associated process flow is illustratedin FIG. 6 (also described below).

For each marketplace listing category in which one or more listingsexist, the marketplace tag 125 includes a hypertext link to moreinformation related to those listings. In one embodiment, selection ofsuch a link causes the system to effectively supplement the productdetail page with detailed information about the subject listings. Forexample, selection of the “7 used” link in FIG. 1A preferably causes themarketplace system to return a version of the detail page that includesdetailed information about each listing falling in the “used” category,as depicted in FIG. 1B (two such listings shown). For each suchmarketplace listing, the page includes additional details about thelisting, such as, for example, the name of the marketplace seller, theseller's average customer rating (based on ratings submitted by priorbuyers), the price, the condition of the product, the seller's shippingpolicy, and a buy button 129 or other link for initiating a purchase(such as adding the product to a shopping cart).

An important aspect of the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 1A and 1B isthat the option to sell a unit of an item within the marketplace isdisplayed in conjunction with (e.g., on the same product detail page as)an option to buy a unit of that item. Thus, users who access the catalogfor purposes of making purchases are exposed to the process by whichthey may list items for sale. As a result of such exposure, users aremore likely to become marketplace sellers. Another benefit is that userscan use the same catalog search and navigation tools for both buying andselling products.

When a user purchases a product from a marketplace seller by selectingthe corresponding buy button 129 to that marketplace listing, themarketplace system typically handles the collections process (e.g.,charges the buyer's credit card), and deposits the resulting proceeds(minus a commission) into a bank account of the seller. Othercollections methods such as direct payment to the seller may also besupported. The marketplace system also notifies the seller of the sale(e.g., by email or directly through xml data feed in the event of volumesellers) so that the seller may ship the product. The system may alsosupport the ability for the buyer to rate the seller after thetransaction is complete, and may publish seller ratings data topotential buyers.

For the convenience of the buyer, an additional tag 150 reiterates theother purchase options that are available to the buyer. In this example,the other options include purchasing the product from the providerseller (“store.com”) and purchasing a collectible unit from amarketplace seller. The tag 150 also includes a “sell yours here” button127 for creating a new marketplace listing, as in FIG. 1A.

Although the above example uses multiple versions or views of aproduct's detail page, in some embodiments, only a single detail pageview may be provided for each product. For example, the details of eachmarketplace listing may be illustrated on the original product detailpage 100. Further, the marketplace listings for a particular product,and the option to create such listings, may be displayed withinnon-product-detail pages, such as search results pages and browse nodepages, that commonly feature or list multiple products per page.

FIG. 2 illustrates another product detail page format that may be usedthroughout the catalog. In this particular example, the page includes aset of tabs 210 that are used to organize various types of informationand options. As is known in the art, selection of a tab reveals theinformation associated with that tab. The tabs in this example include a“Product Information” tab, a “Similar Products” tab, a “Buy it Used” tab210, and a “Reviews” tab. In the illustrated example, selection of the“Buy it Used” tab 210 reveals that the system currently has nomarketplace listings for the book in the “used” category. The page thusprovides potential buyers the ability to preorder a used unit of theillustrated product by clicking on the pre-order button 215. Thus, aswith marketplace product listings, the process of adding a preorderlisting may be initiated from a detail page for the product.

Although product detail pages provide a convenient mechanism foraggregating the foregoing product listings, user options, and otherelements of information associated with a particular product, a skilledartisan will recognize from the disclosure herein that the variousfeatures described can be implemented without the use of product detailpages. For example, the electronic catalog may list multiple productsper page rather than a single product per detail page. In such cases,the option to add a marketplace listing for a product, and the existingmarketplace and/or preorder listings for that product, may simply bedisplayed in connection with the corresponding product description onthe multi-product page. Hybrid approaches which use both product detailpages and other types of pages to display marketplace listings andlisting-creation options are also possible.

B. Creation and Display of Preorder Listings

FIG. 3A illustrates the general form of a “preordering” page 300 thatmay be displayed in response to a buyer requesting to pre-order an itemon a product's detail page, such as by the use of the preorder button215 shown in FIG. 2 (although FIG. 3A corresponds to a different productthan that of FIG. 2). As illustrated, the user is prompted with (1) apulldown menu 305 to specify a minimum acceptable condition of theproduct (which may be “any,” “acceptable,” “good,” “very good,” or “likenew” in one embodiment), (2) a box 310 in which to enter a maximum priceat which the user is willing to buy the product, and (3) a pulldown menu315 specifying the length of time the pre-order is to remain active(e.g., one week, four weeks, eight weeks, until purchased). As describedbelow, this data is preferably used by the marketplace system toautomatically match pre-order listings with marketplace listings. Toassist the user in selecting a suitable maximum price, the systemdisplays the item's list price, the price at which the item is availablefrom the provider seller, and a suggested maximum price. Other pricedata, such as the average selling price of the item within themarketplace (not shown), may also be displayed. The suggested price maybe based on one or more of the criteria set forth above determiningsuggested marketplace listing prices.

Upon selection of a “continue” button 320, the user may be prompted toconfirm the entered information, and in some or all cases, to log in(not shown). The preorder listing is thereafter added to the system, andis displayed on the product's detail page (preferably in summary form,as in FIG. 3B) until fulfillment, expiration, or deletion by the buyer.Thus, similar to the generation of marketplace product listings, theuser need only perform several simple steps in order to generate thepreorder listing, and need not supply a name, product ID, or otherdescription of the product (since the product is already identified onthe detail page from which the process is initiated). The generation ofpreorder listings is discussed in further detail below with reference toFIG. 8.

FIG. 3B illustrates an example detail page for a product for whichmultiple pending preorder listings exist, as indicated by the text “7buyers waiting.” As illustrated by this example, potential sellers ofthe product are notified of the level of demand that exists for theproduct within the marketplace. The details of these seven preorderlistings, including the minimum conditions and maximum prices specified,are preferably not revealed to potential sellers. A “sell yours here”button 325 is also provided to allow sellers to easily load products tosell in order to satisfy the pre-existing demand for non-provider goods.

C. Creation of Marketplace Product Listings

FIGS. 3C-3E illustrate a sequence of web pages 330, 335, 340 that may beused to create a marketplace product listing according to oneembodiment. The example condition page 330 shown in FIG. 3C correspondsto the page depicted after selection of the “sell yours here” button 325in FIG. 3B. The condition page 330 restates the product to be listed forsale, and prompts the seller to select from a list 345 of predefinedproduct condition descriptors. The types of conditions that may bespecified by the seller may be dependent upon the purpose and nature ofthe particular marketplace system and the category or type of productbeing sold. In this particular example, the seller is only permitted tooffer the item as “used” (i.e., all of the condition descriptors are forused products). In other embodiments, such as when the provider does notoffer new products or is out of stock of new products, the seller may beallowed to list the item as “new”. The listing of new products may besuppressed so that the new marketplace seller products are onlydisplayed when the product is not currently available from the providerseller.

With further reference to FIG. 3C, once the condition is specified bythe seller and a “continue” button 350 selected, the seller is promptedvia a price page 335 (FIG. 3D) to enter an optional comment 352 and aselling price 354. The comment 352 may be used to further specify theitem's condition, and is viewable by potential buyers (see FIG. 1B). Toassist the seller in selecting a selling price, the price page 335displays the provider seller's price (which preferably serves as amaximum marketplace listing price), a recommended price (given thecondition specified on the condition page 330), an average sales priceof the item (based on past purchases of used items), and an averageprice of pending preorder listings (if any). The price page 335 in FIG.3D also prompts the seller to specify (1) a zip code 356 from which theitem will be shipped (for purposes of calculating shipping fees), and(2) whether the seller offers expedited shipping, although one or bothof these parameters may be pre-specified by the seller for all of theseller's listings. Upon selection of a “continue” button 358, the systemreturns a confirmation page 340 (FIG. 3E) from which the seller can editthe information entered or immediately list the item for sale byselecting a button 360 to create the listing.

D. Selecting Items to List from Purchase Histories

As mentioned above, the system may also support the ability for users tolist product units for sale within the marketplace from their respectivepurchase histories. Although this feature is preferably implemented incombination with the above-described feature for adding marketplacelistings from product pages in a catalog, each method for creatingmarketplace listings may be implemented independently of the otherwithout departing from the scope of the invention.

FIG. 4A illustrates an example purchase history page 400 including alisting of products purchased by a particular user from the provider orfrom a marketplace seller. A user may access such a page in oneembodiment by selecting a “Purchase History” option from an “Accounts”page. The user may also specify one or more filters, such as, forexample, “last X months,” “Music,” “Items under $X,” or the like, forlimiting the items listed on the page 400. The purchase historypreferably reflect both purchases made from marketplace sellers andpurchases made from the provider seller(s). Although not illustrated inFIG. 4A, the purchase history may also include a listing of productspurchased by others as gifts for the particular user. In addition, asthe result of partnership arrangements with other merchants, thepurchase history may reflect purchases made from third parties, e.g.,from other web sites, online stores, physical stores, or othermarketplace sellers.

As shown in FIG. 4A, the purchase history page 400 includes listings 405of previously purchased products, organized, according to theillustrated embodiment, by product subject matter. As is conventional,the listings 405 include a short description or title of the product,with a hypertext link to the product's detail page. In addition, eachlisting 405 may include one or more of the following types ofinformation (or links to such information): an order number, the pricepaid, the condition of the item when purchased, an order date, and theshipping recipient.

According to one embodiment, each listing 405 also includes a checkbox410, providing the user the option of placing the purchased product onsale in the online marketplace. If desired, the user may check multipleboxes to create multiple marketplace listings in parallel. The user mayalternatively be required to create the listings serially (one at atime), in which case pages of the form shown in FIGS. 3C and 3D may beused. In such an event, the “condition” field 345 and “price” field 354shown in FIGS. 3C and 3D may be pre-populated with the values associatedwith the prior sale, as discussed above.

Selection of the “Sell Checked Items” button in FIG. 4A causes thesystem to generate and return a resell page 450 of the type illustratedin FIG. 4B. From this resell page, the user can specify the conditionand selling price, and enter a comment, for each item to be listed. Theuser may also be prompted to specify the zip code of the shippinglocation and the shipping methods supported, as in FIG. 3D. If the itemwas previously purchased “used” from a marketplace seller, some or allof the check boxes and fields shown in FIG. 4B may be pre-populated bythe system with the values used for the prior sale.

As illustrated in FIG. 4B, the resell page 450 may also displaysuggested prices for each item to be listed for each possible condition.The suggested prices for an item may be generated by the system based onsuch criteria as the item's list price, the prices at which the item isavailable from other marketplace sellers, the provider seller's pricefor the item, the price paid for the item by the user, and/or historicalprices paid for the item within the marketplace.

Upon selection of the “Submit for Resale” button (or upon a subsequentconfirmation), a separate marketplace listing is created for each item.Preferably, these marketplace listings are displayed on product detailpages as set forth above. Thus, as with the process of creatingmarketplace listings from product detail pages, the overhead typicallyassociated with uploading product descriptions and images issignificantly reduced or avoided.

As mentioned above, the system may additionally or alternatively useuser purchase histories, and/or other evidence of item ownership, toproactively generate requests to users to list their items in themarketplace. An example listing request 455 that is sent via e-mail isdepicted in FIG. 4C. When sent by email, these listing requests mayinclude links 460 to web pages for creating the listings. For example,selection of one of the three products/links 460 in FIG. 4C would, inone embodiment, cause the page of FIG. 3C to be displayed, but with theselected product described in place of the “Olympus Camedia” product. Aninterface of the type shown in FIG. 4A (which supports creating multiplemarketplace listings in parallel) may also be used within the listingrequests.

As mentioned above, a listing request 455 may be sent to a user inresponse to one or more of the following events: (1) expiration of aparticular time period from prior purchase of item, where such timeperiod may be dependent upon the type or identify of the particularitem, (2) submission by the user of review or rating for the item; (3)purchase by the user of a superceding or replacement item; (4) theexistence of a threshold number of preorder requests for the item. Themarketplace system may also generate listing requests for products otherthan those actually known to have been purchased by the relevant user.For example, a request to list an item may be sent to a user who merely(1) is the recipient of a wish list or other gift purchase of the itemby another user; (2) has submitted a rating or review of the item, (3)has recommended the item to another user through a “community” typeservice or forum of the system, or (4) has explicitly indicatedownership of the item.

The product detail and other pages of FIGS. 1A-4B represent specificembodiments of the invention, and are not intended to be limiting.Rather, a skilled artisan will recognize from the disclosure herein thata wide number of combinations of differing tags, tabs, links and/orother display elements may be used to covey to a user the productlistings and options available. In addition, some or all of thedisplayed information and options may be presented using displays otherthan web pages, or may be presented audibly through a voice interface.Further, the number of pages used to create a listing, and the numberand types of information elements requested from the listing creator,may be varied from those shown (see, e.g., subsection IV below titled“single-action creation of marketplace listings.”)

III. DISPLAY OF MARKETPLACE OPTIONS ON PAGES OF RELATED PRODUCTS

In the example pages described above, the options to buy, sell, andpreorder a particular product in the online marketplace are presentedwithin a product detail page for that product. One extension is to alsodisplay one or more of these options within the product detail pages ofrelated products. For instance, when a marketplace listing exists forproduct A, this listing may be displayed within the product detail pagesof product A plus the N products most closely related to product A. Withreference to FIG. 2, for example, selection of the “similar products”tab may reveal a list of products that are related to the productfeatured on the detail page, together with an indication of whether anymarketplace listings exist for each such product. The detail page maysimilarly include options to sell and/or preorder each such relatedproduct.

The display within a given product's detail page of marketplace listingsfor related products may be made contingent upon whether any marketplacelistings exist for the given product. With this approach, the user isinformed of listings of related products only when no marketplacelistings exist for the product being viewed.

To implement this extension, a table or database may be maintained withinformation about which products in the catalog are closely related.This information may also be encoded within the HTML or other files usedto generate product detail pages. For instance, the coding for productA's detail page may indicate that the page should also display anyexisting marketplace listings for products B, C and D.

In one embodiment, the “product relatedness” data used to implement thisfeature is generated automatically by periodically analyzing browsinghistories of users to identify products that are frequently viewedduring the same browsing session. For example, products A and B may bedeemed related because a large percentage of users who viewed A alsoviewed B during the same session. An important attribute of this methodis that the related products reflected in the table tend to besubstitutes (because customers tend to view like or substitute productsduring individual browsing sessions). Product relatedness data may alsobe generated based on user purchase histories (e.g., products A and Bare related because a large percentage of customers who bought A alsobought B). Example methods for identifying related products usingproduct viewing and purchase histories are described in U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/821,712, filed Mar. 29, 2001, and U.S. Pat. No.6,266,649, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated byreference. The task of identifying related products may alternatively beperformed using other sources of information, such as productdescriptions and/or product classifications.

IV. SINGLE-ACTION CREATION OF MARKETPLACE LISTINGS

As mentioned above, the online marketplace system may also support theability for users to add marketplace product listings through a singlemouse click or other single action, without the need to perform anyfurther action. This may be accomplished, for example, by providingmultiple single-action buttons or other links, each of which correspondsto a particular condition and selling price for listing the displayedproduct. For example, the following single-action links may be displayedin addition to the option to manually enter the condition and price:“Like new—list immediately for $20;” “Very good condition—listimmediately for $18;” “Good condition—list immediately for $15,” or thelike.

The foregoing single-actions links for a given product may be displayedin the product's detail page, in the purchase history of a user whopurchased the product (see FIG. 4A), and/or in a listing requesttransmitted to a user. Selection of such a single-action link preferablycauses the advertised transaction to be completed without further actionby the seller, although the seller may be permitted to subsequentlycancel the transaction. In one embodiment, the option to post newmarketplace listings by single action may be enabled and disabled byusers as an account setting.

V. SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE

FIG. 5A illustrates the user and system components to enable marketplacesales according to one web-based embodiment. One or more user devices orsystems 505 (one shown) allow users to access a marketplace web sitesystem 515 over a communication network 520, such as the Internet 525.Similarly, one or more volume seller systems 510 may access themarketplace web site system over the communication network 520. Themarketplace web site system 515 preferably includes or communicates witha backend payment processing system 548 that handles such tasks ascredit card processing and ACH (Automated Clearing House) transfers.Although the marketplace system is in the form of a web site system 515in the embodiment of FIG. 5A, other types of server systems may be used(e.g., those of an online services network or interactive televisionsystem).

The user systems 505 in the illustrated embodiment can be any type ofcomputing device that enables a user (including both buyers and sellers)to interactively and remotely access the marketplace web site system 515via the communication network 520. Each such device 505 runs a webbrowser 530, such as Netscape® Navigator, Microsoft® Internet Explorer,or a micro-browser adapted for use on a handheld device.

As will be appreciated, the type or types of user devices 505 supportedwill generally depend on the type of platform used to host themarketplace system (e.g., web site, online services network, interactivetelevision system, etc.). For example, in some embodiments, the usersystem 505 may be in the form of an interactive television, a computingdevice that runs a proprietary client program, an interactive kiosk, apersonal digital assistant, or a telephone that connects to an AutomatedVoice Recognition (“AVR”) system.

The volume seller systems 510 may be any of the foregoing types of usersystems 505, or a combination thereof. Typically, the volume sellersystem 510 will include an inventory management system 535 which storesand tracks information regarding the inventory of the volume seller,such as, for example, product information, product IDs, quantities, andif applicable, product conditions. In one embodiment of the marketplaceweb site, a volume seller may export its inventory data into aspreadsheet (or create the spreadsheet manually), and then upload thespreadsheet to the marketplace web site system 515 to create theassociated marketplace listings. Although bulk uploading support forvolume sellers is preferably provided, such support may be omitted.

The marketplace web site system 515 hosts the electronic catalog, andprovides the various functionality and services of the marketplacesystem. The web site system 515 may be implemented using Windows or Unixbased server systems, although other types of computer systems may beused. As mentioned above, the web site may be operated by a providerseller that uses the electronic catalog to sell retail items tocustomers. The provider seller may also take commissions on, and/orotherwise charge fees for, the listing and sales activities ofmarketplace sellers. In some embodiments, the marketplace system mayinclude multiple, distinct web sites 515 or other systems, including websites associated with affiliated merchants; for example, where multipleprovider sellers are involved, each may host its own catalog content onits own respective web site. In still other environments, the operatorof the marketplace web site system 515 may limit its role solely tocreation and maintenance of an accurate catalog of goods, with all newand used goods being offered for sale by third parties.

As illustrated, the marketplace web site system 515 includes a webserver 540 which accesses a database of web documents 542 and relatedcontent. The web documents 542 may include standard HTML documents andtemplates, as well as other types of documents, used to generate webpages of the types depicted in the preceding figures. The documents usedto create product detail pages, and other types of pages that includedynamic content, preferably include coding that specifies the particulardatabase look-up operations needed to obtain the dynamic content. Anexample process that may be used to generate product detail pages isillustrated in FIG. 5B and is discussed below.

The marketplace web site system 515 also includes a database collection544, a loader 546, and web site code 550. The web site code 550 includesvarious service components used to generate dynamic web pages and toprocess form submissions and requests submitted by users. Flow diagramsfor some of the processes embodied within the web site code are includedin FIGS. 5B-10 and are described below.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the database collection 544 preferably comprises aproduct information database 560 (also referred to as a “productdatabase”), a product listing database 562, and a user database 564.Each database may be in the form of a relational database, a flat filesystem, and/or any other type of suitable data repository. A greater orlesser number of databases may be used.

The product information database 560 stores information about thevarious products that users can purchase and sell through themarketplace web site, and is the primary source of the catalog contentdisplayed in product detail pages (and other types of pages). Theproduct information stored in this database may include, for example,product IDs, product names and descriptions, product images, customerand professional reviews, information about which products are similarto other products, prices, and other types of information as describedabove. As is conventional, the information for each item may be arrangedwithin fields, such as “author,” “title,” and “product ID” fields,enabling the catalog to be searched by users on a field-restricted basisusing a search engine of the web site.

The product information database 560 may include two or moresub-databases, each of which is associated with a particular type orcategory of product. For instance, book titles may be represented in abibliographic database that is separate from a database used forelectronics devices.

The product information database 560, or another appropriate datarepository, may also store lists of products that tend to be purchasedin sequence (e.g., Harry Potter books 1-4). This information may beused, for example, to trigger the generation of a listing request when auser purchases the next product in the sequence (e.g., solicitinglisting of Harry Potter book 1 upon purchase of Harry Potter book 2).The sequences may be specified by administrators, and/or may be detectedby a software component that analyzes user purchase histories. Theproduct database 560 may also store information about products that aredeemed to supersede one another, and this information may similarly beused to generate listing requests.

The product listing database 562 stores information about the varioustypes of listings, including marketplace product listings and preorderlistings. This database may also store information about which products,if any, are currently available from a provider seller, and may storenon-catalog-based listings. For each marketplace or preorder listing,the product listing database 562 preferably stores information about thetype of the listing, the product to which it corresponds (which may bespecified by an ASIN or other product ID), the creator of the listing,and the status of the listing (pending, fulfilled, expired, etc.). Someof this information may be in the form of links or pointers to entriesor records in other databases 560, 564. As product detail pages areaccessed by users of the marketplace web site, the product listingdatabase 562 is queried to determine whether any marketplace or preorderlistings exist that should be displayed on such pages.

The user database 564 stores information about existing users of themarketplace web site system 515. For each user, this information mayinclude, for example, a name, password, shipping address, e-mailaddress, payment information, bank account information (particularly forsellers who have elected to have sales proceeds deposited into theirbank accounts), wish list contents, preference settings, and a purchasehistory. Each purchase history may include information about thepurchases made by and for a respective user, including the relevantproduct IDs, purchase prices, product conditions, and purchase dates.

With further reference to FIG. 5A, the web site system also includes aloader component 546 that provides functionality, including applicationprogram interfaces (APIs), for volume sellers to perform bulk uploads asdescribed above. The bulk uploading process is described in furtherdetail below.

FIG. 5B illustrates a process that may be used by the web site system togenerate product detail pages in response to requests from user devices505. Initially, the web server 540 receives a page request thatidentifies a particular product (e.g., by its ASIN or other product ID),and retrieves a template or other base document for generating a productdetail page (blocks 570 and 572). The base document preferably includesa link for initiating creation of a marketplace listing, as in FIGS. 1Aand 1B.

To populate the detail page, the web server 540 invokes code 550 thataccesses the product information database 560 and the product listingsdatabase 562 to retrieve catalog content and pending listings,respectively, for the subject product (blocks 574 and 576). Theinformation about pending marketplace listings and/or preorder listingsmay be displayed on the page in a summarized form, as in FIG. 1A. Insome embodiments, the page may also be customized or personalized forthe particular user who requested the page, as is known in the art.

The data retrieved from the databases 560, 562 may also includeinformation about whether the product is currently available from aprovider seller. This information may be used to determine the types ofpurchase options to display within the page (not shown). As mentionedabove, any marketplace listings for “new” products may be omitted fromthe display if the product is currently available from a providerseller.

As depicted by blocks 578 and 580 in FIG. 5B, if the product is notcurrently available from a marketplace seller, the page is preferablygenerated to include an option to preorder the item from an unspecifiedmarketplace seller, as in FIG. 2. In some implementations, thepreordering option may alternatively be displayed regardless of whetherthe product is currently available from a marketplace seller. Further,the option to preorder may be restricted based on the types ofmarketplace listings that currently exist; for instance, if the productis currently available from marketplace sellers but not in the“collectable” category, an option to preorder a collectable unit of theproduct may be provided.

The populated product detail page is finally returned to the requestinguser device at block 582.

VI. EXAMPLE PROCESS FLOWS

Process flow diagrams illustrating interactions between users and themarketplace web site will now be described with reference to FIG. 6(showing creation of a marketplace listing), FIG. 7 (showing a bulkuploading process), FIG. 8 (showing creation of a preorder listing),FIG. 9 (showing parallel creation of multiple marketplace listings froma purchase history), and FIG. 10 (showing a purchase transaction). Theleft side of each such drawing represents actions performed by a user(via a user system 505 and web browser 530), and the actions shown onthe right are those of the web site system 515 performed via executablecode. As will be recognized, the order in which the actions occur may bevaried, and some actions may be omitted.

A. Creation of Marketplace Listings

FIG. 6 further illustrates the marketplace listing creation processdepicted in FIGS. 3D-3E. As described above, this process may be used tocreate a marketplace listing from a product detail page or a purchasehistory listing. As illustrated, the user initially selects a “sell”option for a particular product (block 605), and specifies the product'scondition (block 610). As described above, the condition can preferablybe specified by selecting a predefined condition descriptor (“like new,”“very good,” etc.), and may be further specified by entering a textualcomment. In response to submission of the condition information, thesystem preferably looks up pricing information from the productinformation and product listing databases 560, 562 (block 615), andreturns such information (and/or price values calculated therefrom) tothe user system 505 for display. FIG. 3D illustrates examples of thetypes of price information that may be returned to assist the seller inselecting a selling price.

As depicted by blocks 620 and 625, the seller then specifies the sellingprice and the location from which the product will be shipped. Thelocation information is preferably used by the system to calculateshipping costs to be charged to the buyer. The seller may also be askedto specify the shipping methods supported, as in FIG. 3D.

The user may also be prompted to sign-in, and if applicable, to registeras a seller (block 630). In one embodiment, an unregistered seller mayfinish creating the marketplace listing before registering, althoughbuyers may be prevented from buying the listed item until registrationis complete. As part of seller registration, the seller may be required,or given the option, to specify a bank account into which sales proceedsare to be automatically deposited by ACH transfer.

In response to submission of the various information items, the web sitesystem preferably generates a transaction summary page of the type shownin FIG. 3E (block 635). From this page, the user can confirm thetransaction (block 640). Upon such confirmation, the web site systempreferably determines whether the new marketplace listing satisfies or“matches” any preorder listings that exist for the product in theproduct listing database 562. A match with a preorder listing may bedeemed to occur if both (1) the selling price is equal to or below the“maximum price” of the preorder listing, and (2) the condition specifiedby the seller is the same as or better than the minimum conditionspecified in the preorder listing (see FIG. 3A). If multiple matchesexist, the preorder request that was created first may be used. If amatch is found, the seller may be immediately notified that a buyer hasbeen found, and the new marketplace listing may be prevented from beingdisplayed to other potential buyers.

Finally, the product listing database 562 is updated to reflect the newmarketplace listing, as well as the outcome of the search for a matchingpreorder. If no match was found, this update will cause the newly addedmarketplace listing to be displayed on the product's detail page whenthe page is loaded by a user (see FIG. 5B). If a match was found, thematching preorder listing will be fulfilled, and will not be displayedon the product's detail page. As part of the fulfillment process, apre-designated credit card of the buyer (i.e., the user who created theassociated pre-order listing) may be charged, and a portion of theproceeds deposited into the account of the seller. In addition, theseller may be notified by email, or via a web page, of both the saleevent and the shipping address of the buyer.

B. Bulk Uploading Process

FIG. 7A illustrates a bulk uploading process 700 for loading inventorydata of a volume seller according to one embodiment. To assist thevolume seller, the marketplace web site may provide instructionsregarding the data and file formats supported, and may provide web formsfor prompting the volume seller for the various information itemsneeded. As shown in FIG. 7A, the volume seller initially selects aninventory listing file to upload to the marketplace web site 515 (block705). The seller may select or create the inventory listing file usingthe inventory management system 535, or may create the file manually.

In implementations that support multiple file formats, the volume sellermay also specify the format of the inventory listing file to be uploaded(block 710). The volume seller may also specify the format or type ofdata included in the file. For example, information pertaining to booklistings may follow a number of standardized formats. The data fieldsused to specify the items to be listed may vary depending on the type ofproduct involved.

As depicted by block 715, the volume seller may also review and selectvarious upload options which define the type of replacement algorithm tobe executed with respect to the volume seller's product listings. Forexample, the upload options may include “Add/Modify/Delete,”“Modify/Delete,” “Purge/Replace,” or the like. According to oneembodiment, the “Add/Modify/Delete” option causes the system to addlistings which are new from the seller, modify those listings which havechanged, and delete those listings no longer included in the inventorylisting file. The “Modify/Delete” option, which may be used when theinventory listing file contains no new entries, causes the system toperform a simple comparison against a previous version of the inventorylisting file, and to update the product listings database with anychanges. The “Purge/Replace” option instructs the online marketplacesystem to purge all previous product listings of the volume seller fromthe product listing database 562, and to load the replacement listingsof the inventory listing file. The seller may also be prompted to reviewand select preferences associated with the upload operation (block 720),such as shipping preferences.

In one embodiment, the volume seller is also be prompted to specifywhether the listing descriptions or “records” specified in the inventoryfile are to be loaded (1) as catalog-based or “marketplace” listingsthat are displayed in the catalog in conjunction with correspondingproduct descriptions, (2) as non-catalog-based listings that are notdisplayed in conjunction with corresponding product descriptions, or (3)as either catalog-based or non-catalog-based listings, depending uponwhether an ASIN or other recognized product ID is supplied or can beidentified. For purposes of the following description, it may be assumedthat the volume seller has specified either option 1 or 3, and thuswishes to have at least some of the bulk-uploaded items appear oncorresponding product pages in the catalog.

Upon uploading the inventory file (blocks 725 and 730), the loader 546parses the file and attempts to match each record to an existing productrepresented in the product database 560 and catalog. When a record inthe uploaded file includes a product ID (ASIN, UPC, ISBN, etc.) thatmatches a product ID in the product database 560, the loader 546 simplyloads the record into the product listing database 562, causing thelisting to thereafter appear on the product's detail page (assuming nomatching preorder listing exists).

When a record in the uploaded file does not have a product ID, theloader 546 preferably executes one or more search routines to attempt tomatch the record with a product represented in the products database560, to thereby assign a product ID to the record. For example, if theinventory listing file specifies a manufacturer and model number, theloader may search the products database 560 for a product of likemanufacturer and model number. When a single match is found as theresult of the search, the loader 546 loads the record into the productlisting database 562 together with the product ID of the matchingproduct, causing the new marketplace listing to appear on the matchingproduct's detail page. The matching logic used in one embodiment isdetailed in FIG. 7B. In addition, an example matching routine used forbulk-uploaded book listings is summarized in Table 1.

When the loader is unable to find a matching product record in theproduct database 560, the loader may perform one or more of thefollowing actions: (1) load the record as a non-catalog-based listing(e.g., if the user has enabled this option), (2) store the unmatchedlisting for review by an administrator, (3) reject the listing, or (4)query the inventory management system 535 of the volume seller for moreinformation.

Upon completion of the matching process, the web site system preferablyattempts to find preorder requests, as described above, that may befulfilled by the newly added marketplace listings (block 735). In somecases, an uploaded marketplace listing may specify that the volumeseller has multiple units of the item to be listed, in which case themarketplace listing may be used to fulfill multiple preorder listings.

Finally, the loader 546 generates and returns a report (block 740)indicating the success or failure of each attempt to add a newmarketplace listing. TABLE 1 Process for matching bulk-uploaded recordto Product ID (ASIN) Given the item-name of the book: Use search APIs toretrieve the ASIN of the exact title If no ASIN matches exact title,perform a wild card title search using search APIs For each ASINobtained from search, fetch record from database Check author name,publisher, publish date and the binding information of the incomingrecord against this database record. Calculate accuracy score based onhow much information in incoming record and database record is the same.Compare all ASINs based on the total score and availability Pick/rejectASINs based on set of rules (see appendix) For an in-print ASIN, all ofthe fields may be required to match. For an out-of-print (oop) ASIN,only the item-title and author name fields may be required to match.

FIG. 7B illustrates the logic used in one embodiment to attempt touniquely match a record in an inventory file to a product (and thusASIN) in a product database. If a single match is found, the record isassociated with the ASIN of the matching product, and the record isloaded into the product listings database as a marketplace listing fordisplay on the matching product's detail page. If either (1) no matchesare found, or (2) multiple matches are found, the record is not loadedas a marketplace listing but may be loaded as a non-catalog-basedlisting. A scoring process is preferably used to determine whether a“match” exists.

C. Preordering Process

FIG. 8 further illustrates a preorder process 800 by which a user maypreorder a product, as depicted in FIGS. 2 and 3A. As described above,the user preferably initiates this process from the product's detailpage (block 805). In some embodiments, users may also or alternativelybe permitted to initiate preordering from other types of catalog pages,including browse node pages and other pages that feature multipleproducts.

The user first specifies the minimum condition of the product (block810). As depicted in block 815, the system may use the conditiondescriptor selected by the buyer to suggest a price. The price mayalternatively be suggested without regard to the condition specified bythe buyer, as in FIG. 3A. The user then enters the price (taking intoaccount or ignoring the suggested price) (block 820), the maximumduration the listing is to remain active (block 825), and payment andshipping information for purchasing the product (block 830). The usermay also be prompted to sign in or register (not shown).

The system then generates and returns a transaction summary page thatprovides an option for the user to confirm the transaction (block 835).If the user confirms the transaction (block 840), the system updates theproduct listing database 562 with the preorder listing (block 845),causing the preorder listing to thereafter be displayed on the product'sdetail page. A background task may be executed periodically to removeunfulfilled preorder listings that have expired.

D. Listing Requests

FIG. 9 illustrates a general process 800 by which the marketplace systemmay use listing requests to solicit new marketplace listings. Asmentioned above, the transmission of a listing request to a user may betriggered by a particular event, such as passage of a selected timeinterval from a product's purchase, submission by the user of a reviewor rating, purchase by the user of a superceding product, or theexistence of preorders for the product. As depicted by blocks 905 and910, the listing request may be for one or more products in the targetuser's purchase history, and may be conveyed by email or a custom webpage. Pop up windows and other display methods may also be used.

For each product, the listing request preferably includes a link to apage of the type shown in FIG. 3D, allowing the user to initiatecreation of a marketplace listing. The link is preferably a hyperlinkthat may be selected by the user, but may alternatively be a simple URL(uniform resource locator) that may be copied into the address field ofa browser. The ID of the product may be encoded within this link toallow the web site system to identify the product upon selection of thelink. As depicted in blocks 915 and 920, for each product selected bythe user to resell, the process beginning at block 610 of FIG. 6 may berepeated. The listing request may also support the ability for the userto create multiple marketplace listings in parallel, as depicted inFIGS. 4A and 4B.

E. Purchasing Process

FIG. 10 illustrates a process 1000 that typically occurs when a buyermakes a purchase from a marketplace listing. This process may beinitiated, for example, when a buyer selects an “add to cart” button(not depicted) or a “buy from seller” button 129 (see FIG. 1B) from aproduct detail page (block 1005). In response to the buy request, theweb site system prompts the buyer to specify the shipping address andpayment method (block 1010). The buyer may typically specify each suchitem of information either by selecting/confirming information retrievedfrom the user database 564, or by entering new information. In somecases (not illustrated), single-action ordering may alternatively beused, in which case pre-specified shipping and payment information areused to immediately complete the transaction.

In the illustrated example, the system then generates and returns atransaction summary page that provides an option for the user to confirmthe transaction (block 1015). If the user confirms the transaction(block 1020), the system performs the following actions: (1) performs afraud check of buyer/seller; (2) charges the buyer's credit card (orotherwise collects payment); (3) transfers resulting proceeds, minus acommission, by ACH to the seller's bank account (although the proceedsfrom multiple sales may be aggregated for purposes of such transfers);(4) updates the product listing database 562 to reflect the sale, and(5) sends a purchase notification message by email to the seller withshipping instructions (block 1025). These actions (1)-(5) are alsoperformed when a preorder listing is matched with a marketplace listing.Additional communications may also be transmitted to the buyer orseller, depending on the processes selected by the marketplace operator.

A purchase confirmation may also be transmitted by email to the buyer(not shown). In some cases, this confirmation may include a shipmenttracking number obtained from the seller, or may specify a storelocation from which the purchased item may be picked up. Thisinformation is also transmitted to the user database 564, so that theuser may access the order history by viewing his or her account.

If persistent marketplace listings are supported, the system may alsodecrement an inventory count associated with the listing. Once thisinventory count reaches zero, the marketplace listing is removed fromthe catalog.

VII. OTHER SERVICES AND COMPONENTS

The marketplace system may also include application components forproviding a variety of other services to volume sellers. For example,the system may communicate order fulfillment reports or other salesinformation to volume sellers in an aggregated or bulk format. Inaddition, the system may support the ability of a seller system 510 toperiodically poll the web site to request inventory updates.

The marketplace system may also communicate from time to time withvolume seller systems 510 to ensure that product listings match currentinventories. For example, some volume sellers may list their largeinventories for a specific product on many online marketplace systems.Thus, at any given moment, multiple systems may attempt to complete atransaction for units of the same product. To reduce the risk that thevolume seller will be unable to fulfill a marketplace order, the systemmay query the volume seller's system 510 to ensure proper inventorybefore completing a purchase transaction.

The system may also support the ability for a marketplace seller torequest that a payment amount be refunded to a buyer because, forexample, the inventory of the seller was depleted before the sale, orthe buyer was dissatisfied with the item.

The marketplace system may also include application components forproviding a variety of other services to assist buyers in identifyingand evaluating products to purchase. For example, the web site mayinclude one or more recommendation services for recommending productsfrom the catalog to users based on their respective profiles. Inaddition, as mentioned above, the web site may include a search enginefor searching the electronic catalog; a browse tree for navigating thecatalog by category; a wish list service; and a service for allowingusers to post product reviews for viewing by others. Exampleimplementations of these and other types of service components that maybe used within the marketplace web site are described in the followingco-pending U.S. patent applications (identified by application numberand filing date), the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated byreference: 09/821,826, filed Mar. 29, 2001; 09/442,677, filed Nov. 18,1999; 09/517,043, filed Mar. 2, 2000; 09/532,230, filed Mar. 22, 2000;and 09/715,850, filed Nov. 17, 2000.

The marketplace web site system may also include components forinterfacing with other web sites and systems, such that users of suchsystems may perform the various functions described herein. Forinstance, the marketplace web site system may be integrated with anonline services network such that users of the online services networkcan view the product catalog, create marketplace and preorder listings,and make marketplace purchases, using a proprietary client application.

VIII. CONCLUSION

Although the invention has been described in terms of certain preferredembodiments, other embodiments will be apparent to those of ordinaryskilled in the art, including embodiments that do not include all of thefeatures and benefits set forth herein. Accordingly, the invention isdefined only by the appended claims.

1. An electronic marketplace system that supports user-to-user sales ofproducts, the system comprising: a server system that provides useraccess to a browsable electronic catalog, said browsable electroniccatalog including descriptions of products that can be listed by usersfor sale to other users; and a preordering component that providesfunctionality for a buyer to preorder a product from an unspecifiedseller by browsing the electronic catalog to a description of theproduct to be preordered and selecting a preordering option to initiatecreation of a preorder listing, whereby buyers can create preorderlistings for selected products; wherein the server system in configuredto incorporate viewable information regarding the preorder listings intopages of the electronic catalog in conjunction with catalog descriptionsof corresponding products, whereby potential sellers are notified viathe electronic catalog of marketplace demand levels for specificproducts.
 2. The system as in claim 1, wherein the server system isconfigured to generate a product detail page containing viewableinformation reflective of a quantity of preorder listings currentlypending for a particular product, such that a potential seller of theproduct can assess a demand level for the product by viewing the productdetail page.
 3. The system as in claim 2, wherein the product detailpage additionally includes an option for a seller of the product toinitiate creation of a listing for selling a unit of the product.
 4. Thesystem as in claim 3, wherein the product detail page additionallyincludes said preordering option.
 5. The system as in claim 1, whereinthe electronic catalog further provides an option for users to purchaseproducts described therein from a retail merchant associated with theelectronic catalog, whereby the electronic catalog supports bothuser-to-user sales and retail sales.
 6. The system as in claim 1,further comprising a marketplace listing creation component that enablessellers to create marketplace product listings for selling products,wherein at least some of the marketplace product listings are displayedin the electronic catalog in conjunction with the catalog descriptionsof the corresponding products.
 7. The system as in claim 6, furthercomprising a matching component that automatically matches preorderlistings with marketplace product listings for fulfillment.
 8. Thesystem as in claim 1, wherein the preordering component prompts acreator of a preorder listing to specify a maximum purchase price and aminimum product condition.
 9. The system as in claim 1, wherein theserver system is responsive to a browser request for a product detailpage of the electronic catalog by determining whether a correspondingproduct is currently available from a marketplace seller, and when theproduct is not available from any marketplace seller, incorporating saidpreordering option into the product detail page.
 10. The system as inclaim 9, wherein the server system is configured to omit saidpreordering option from the product detail page when the product isavailable from a marketplace seller.